The Hundred: Oval Invincibles seamers destroy Welsh Fire in narrow 10-run win | Cricket News

The Oval Invincibles made it two from two in The Hundred, defeating Welsh Fire by 10 runs in a thrilling encounter in Cardiff.

Although they only posted 113-9, the Invincibles’ stellar bowling unit razed the Fire, with the hosts never looking capable of chasing down the modest target.

Leg-spinners Nathan Sowter (2-12) and Adam Zampa (3-24) shone for the defending champions, with the latter claiming his second Meerkat Match Hero award in two games.

Asked to bat by Welsh Fire captain Tom Abell, the Invincibles lost Dawid Malan almost immediately as he shifted David Willey to mid-wicket.

Will Jacks and Tawanda Muyeye responded well on the powerplay, but the Welsh Fire’s talented attack got the job done.

Jacks fell victim to Josh Little finding the hands of Mason Crane on the long square leg boundary (25 off 15), and Jake Ball and Willey removed Sam Billings and Muyeye respectively, leaving the Invincibles struggling at 58-4 at the halfway stage.

Donovan Ferreira (30) and Sam Curran (20) put up some resistance in the face of the Fire attack, but the Invincibles never really got going, with wickets continuing to fall at regular intervals, and Ball ending up as the pick of the bowlers, taking 3-24.

Defending 113 was always going to be a tough task for the Invincibles, and it got even tougher when Jonny Bairstow was bowled for four by Harrison Ward off Saqib Mahmood’s delivery. Luckily for Ward, Australia’s Spencer Johnson cleaned him up a few balls later.

After Curran bowled Joe Clarke with the first ball of his spell, the Invincibles’ spinners came to the fore. Zampa continued his fine form for the Invincibles, taking the wickets of Abell, Tom Kohler-Cadmore (22 off 33) and Willey, while Sowter removed Glenn Phillips and Luke Wells.

Some strong knocks from David Payne (28 off 15) and Mason Crane took the game down to the last balls, but Curran kept his cool and secured victory.

Player of the Match – Adam Zampa

“It was important to start well. We needed a few wickets early on to gain momentum going into the middle overs and the way Spencer (Johnson) and Saqy (Mahmood) bowled was superb. It was really exciting to watch from the middle to the end.

“Me and Sowts (Sowter) have to play different roles throughout the game and when I can concentrate on my job, when I’m bowling more deep, with the run rate increasing.”

“There wasn’t much pace on the wicket, there was a bit of spin if you gave it a little bit. It was difficult to score runs on it throughout the game.”

What is the next?

The Hundred continues on Monday as Manchester Originals face Trent Rockets at Old Trafford.

The women’s match (2.55pm on air, first ball 3pm) will be live on Sky Sports Mix and via a free live stream on skysports.com, the Sky Sports app and the Sky Sports Cricket YouTube channel.

The men’s game kicks off at 6.30pm with build-up starting at 6pm on Sky Sports Mix. There will also be coverage on Sky Sports Cricket from around 6.30pm.

Sky Sports will show all 68 games of The Hundred live, while you can also watch selected matches via free-to-air streams on Sky Sports’ digital platforms and the Sky Sports Cricket YouTube channel.